Japan's Nikkei index falls 4.7 percent after Wall Street plunge
The Nikkei stock market index closed at 21,610.24 points, down 1,071 points, or 4.73 percent, in response to US stocks plunging on Monday.
Topix, the second most important indicator, which tracks all domestic companies of the Tokyo Stock Exchange's First Section, fell by 80.33 points, or 4.4 percent, to 1,743.41 points.
Tokyo opened the day in the red and continued to fall, and at one point was down by 7.06 percent, its worst intraday fall in 18 years, before regaining some ground.
Investors in Tokyo reacted with panic to the 4.6 percent plunge that the Dow Jones suffered on Monday.
The S&P 500 dropped 4.10 percent, its worst loss since Aug. 2011, while the NASDAQ fell by 3.78 percent.
The fall was fueled by fears of returning inflation in the US.
The Nikkei's losses became more acute after the yen appreciated against the dollar, which hurts Japanese exporters.
In just a few minutes, the greenback went from being worth 109 yen to 108.62 yen.
Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade, and Industry Hiroshige Seko, said on Tuesday after the abrupt fall in stocks that he would continue to monitor the market and played down the drop by pointing to the profits that companies were making in the country.
Seko said that corporate profits are at record levels and the trend in the Japanese market was far from being pessimistic, news agency Kyodo reported.